Are You Suffering?

          There seem to be certain things that take place in our lives that trigger a response of some sort based upon some action that took place a number of years ago.  Even an aroma can stir an emotion, perhaps of Thanksgiving on the farm or at Grandma's house.  Even a song can be a reminder of someone in your past.  I went to college later in life.  I often say it took twenty years for me to get my college finished.  I had one year in 1958 and I graduated from Washington Bible College in 1978.  There were, of course, about 17 years in between when God was preparing me for what was to come.  During my time towards the end of my education, I spent a lot of time drinking in the information of my professors.  One of my professors required us to give a synopsis of a Bible book during our study of that book.  It was called the "theme core" of the whole book.  While studying the epistles of Peter, he suggested the theme core to be, "Suffering Leads to Glory."  First Peter 5:10 says, "But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you." 
       Both of the words are used quite often, some eighteen times for the both of them, in the book.  this statement near the closing of the book reminds me of that theme core from years past.  I am attracted to the phrase, "after that ye have suffered a while..."  Are you going through some problem right now?  Are you facing some difficulty in a certain relationship with another person, believer or unbeliever?  Are you finding that your job is not the perfect job?  Are you even having trouble in church?  Have you been hurt at a church business meeting?  These may be some of the things that affect your life today in our country.   The suffering, whichever state it might be, is going to be in your life.  Christ reminded us that the world hated Him and it is going to hate us also.  Suffering takes on different degrees depending on where you are.  When I think about suffering, I am reminded about 20 Vietnamese who were running  as fast as they could, singing "It is Well With My Soul" as they were being gunned down.  They suffered to the point of giving their lives for their faith.  Another example were the five teenage girls that were attacked in India, four of which were beheaded and their heads left at the church door.  Some statistics point out the fact that there were more Christians persecuted to the point of death in 1995 than there were in the entire Foxes Book of Martyrs and things have not gotten better since 1995 but are worse today than ever before.  There is a ray of hope however in the fact that "suffering leads to glory" and the glory is far greater than we could ever imagine.  We can see but a glimpse of this glory in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ and His ascension into heaven and the promises of the Book of Revelation.  So, whatever is going on in your life in the area of today's suffering is going to give way to glory.  God has promised it and that settles it.  Praise God for His plan for all of our lives.